Landor v. Louisiana Dept of Corrections and Public Safety · ¶90

For decades, the Court has used a consistent yardstick to measure the constitutionality of Spending Clause legislation. We crystallized that metric in Dole, 483 U. S. 203. Funding conditions in laws enacted pursuant to the Spending Clause must be in pursuit of the general welfare; unambiguously expressed; related to the federal interest; and not in violation of other constitutional provisions. Id., at 207– 208. The “financial inducement offered by Congress” also may not be “so coercive as to pass the point at which ‘pressure turns into compulsion.’” Id., at 211.

slip opinion, revised 6/28/26
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